BZZZ of the week: Crowdsourcing
A weekly post of catchwords that buzz around today. The BZZZ for this week is: Crowdsourcing.
The Department of the Interior is crowdsourcing the design of its new logo. What’s that mean?
According to Jeff Howe, a contributing editor for Wired Magazine, crowdsourcing is when a company takes a job that was once performed by employees [or specialists] and outsources it in the form of an open call to a large, undefined group of people, generally using the Internet.
The Department of Interior has posted a creative brief on crowdspring.com inviting any interested party to submit logo concepts, not for a sub-level program or one-time event, but for the agency itself. If your logo is chosen, you receive $1,000. You also can’t claim public credit for your work.
The design community that I’m a part of is buzzing with indignation (and fear?) about the prospect of a major government agency so commoditizing the brand development process. We spend years developing the skills to create visual branding founded on thorough research and a carefully honed process. Now the masses get a one-page creative brief, $1,000 carrot dangling in front of them and two weeks to do the job on spec. It’s a slam to our profession and a threat to our businesses.
Well, welcome to the club. Jeff Howe’s recent article shows how crowdsourcing is impacting everything from software development to scientific research and development to photography.
There’s a petition circulating that urges the Department of Interior to reconsider and withdraw its posting, but I don’t have much hope that it will happen. Hundreds of people have already submitted concepts. Some are horrible, some not bad visually. None are based on any depth of understanding about the Department’s audience and what the agency needs to accomplish with this identity.
Crowdsourcing is a practice that is not going to go away. For me, it’s sounding a death knell for quality, not just in my profession, but probably yours, too.
Tags: buzz words, crowdsourcing, graphic design, Jeff Howe, logos, visual branding
Anya combines her passion to help people find a voice with years of
experience in the real-worl business of design. She believes a well-chosen
word, color or touch connects people and creates action. Her life as a
counselor and yoga teacher keeps competition, deadlines and concern for the
bottom line in proper perspective.